Namunwa SDA Church

Halloween is celebrated in North America on the night of October 31st. Originally, Halloween was celebrated with gifts of fruit and costumes to confuse evil spirits. Now the tradition includes trick-or-treating, gruesome yard decorations, ghost-themed grocery store merchandise and costume parties.

The word Halloween comes from a historical holiday called All Hallows Day, known in Spanish as Día de Todos los Santos. All Saints' Day is celebrated on November 1. The Celtic druids of England revered it as the most important holiday of the year and highlighted that day as the time when the spirits of the dead communicated with the living. The Catholic Church incorporated pagan beliefs into its own doctrines, and, what is celebrated today in Europe and North America is a mixture of Christian and pagan traditions.

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The Day of the Dead is a celebration quite similar to Halloween and is celebrated on November 1 and 2 throughout Latin America. This celebration has its origins in an indigenous tradition in which the souls or spirits of the deceased return to the world of the living to communicate with their relatives. Later, the Catholic Church incorporated this tradition into its doctrines on the immortality of the soul and the communion of saints. The doctrine of the immortality of the soul states that the soul of the deceased does not die but continues to live in heaven, hell, or purgatory. The doctrine of the communion of saints holds that saints possess additional merits that they can share with the living and the deceased. According to these beliefs, saints can help the living and the souls of the deceased escape hell and purgatory and enter heaven. Today, the celebration of the Day of the Dead incorporates both indigenous traditions and these Catholic traditions.

To celebrate this day, in some cultures, the deceased's family and loved ones prepare paths of marigold petals to guide the soul to the family altar. They also prepare the deceased's favorite food and clean and decorate their grave. The townspeople dress up in costumes and celebrate the return of the spirits with parades. In addition to these basic activities, many others have been incorporated over time, varying by region and culture.

So, the question arises: Should Christians celebrate these two holidays or others like them?

Let's take a closer look at what these two holidays celebrate. Both holidays focus on visits from the dead to the living. Our first question would then be: can the dead visit the living? The Bible clearly states in Ecclesiastes that “the dead know nothing” (Ecclesiastes 9:5). It goes on to say, “Their love, their hatred, and their envy have now perished; Nevermore will they have a share in anything done under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 9:6). Here we see that the dead cannot visit the living because they have ceased to exist.

But this does not mean that death is the end of the story. The dead will rise again someday when Jesus comes back! Daniel says, “And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting contempt” (Daniel 12:2). Someday they will live again, but now they are in the grave waiting for that great event.

So if it is not the deceased who come to visit us, who is it? Some people say they have been visited by some kind of spirit. Some of these encounters have been very frightening. Where do these spirits come from? Paul says, “...For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light” (2 Corinthians 11:14).

There are only two spiritual powers: God and all His ministers of light, or Satan with all his fallen angels, known as demons. God has clearly stated that the dead cannot communicate with us. They are in the grave awaiting the resurrection. Therefore, if there are supernatural apparitions with certain spirits claiming to be souls of deceased loved ones, we know that they do not come from God. This brings us to the only conclusion: these apparitions are Satan and his ministers, the fallen angels (demons) disguised as deceased loved ones to deceive us. Paul recognized this fact when he wrote that we do not wrestle against flesh and blood “...but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12).

This is why the practice of witchcraft and the work of mediums are so dangerous. These are not beloved departed ones coming to visit us, greet us, and help us. No! Rather, it is Satan and his demons trying to deceive us and eventually destroy us. Peter says, “...your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8).

Let us recognize, then, that our struggle is against Satan and his angels. But God has not left us alone in the fight. “Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil” (Ephesians 6:11). God has not left us without help. He gives us armor to fight against the enemy. God tells us to put on the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the helmet of salvation, and hold up the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God (Ephesians 6:14-17). But the passage emphasizes the shield of faith. “Above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one” (Ephesians 6:16). Although it may seem harmless to play with demons and evil spirits on Halloween or the Day of the Dead, it can cause us incalculable harm. Next time, instead of going out to buy a Halloween costume, choose to take up the shield of faith in Jesus, so you will be protected from all the snares of the devil.